The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-06-29
4 GREAT WHEAT PANIC.
Unparalleled Excitement in the
Chicago Board of Trade.
A Big Drop in the Market, Fol-
lowed by Heavy Failures

A CLIQUE of spectators who had "cor-
neredn wheat and raised its price steadily for
some time have come to grief. Particulars
of the clique's collapse and the excitement
which followed are given in Chicago dis
patch, which says:
Never since the John B. Lyon wheat cor
ner, in 1872. has the Chicago Board of Trade
known such exciting scenes as occurred in the
pit to-day. Wheat, during the, Lyon
corner, fell SO cents a bushel in
one hour and colossal fortunes were
lost and made. Five years later, IN the
course of the war between Russia and Tur-
kew, there was another big drop, but it was
not attended with nearly so great an ex-
citement as the great flop of nearly ~ cents
10 cts before O'Clock. This tremendous break
caused the failure of Maurice Rosen-
field & Co., and the latter disaster in turn
was responsible for the collapse of Hammil q
Brine and E. W. Bailey G. Co., and the serl-
Gus embarrassment of c. j. Kershaw & co.
This involves loss in sight of nearly S2,O0O,-
600, and should the latter firm not be sus-
tanned by their Cincinnati hackers the com,
bined liabilities of the four firms named
will reach nearer S3,0O0,000 That in such
an event other firms will 60 to the wall and
materially swell the sum total of the disaster
is certainty. The following table shows the
range of prices for wheat prevailing on
Highest. Lo,eest. Closing;
June June. 3S:sssl s.......::...ssHl 7S 7sS2 50 *
sepsembiser......7s1 76A 77I
It will be seen that cash wheat at the
opening stood So cents higher than July
delivery-a most abnormal figure. The
general idea is that cash stuff ought not to
range higher than ~ cents over thirty days
delivery.
The causes which led up to the break are
manifold and the inside history of the mis-
carried corner is largely matter of guess
work It is known that for the last two
months most, if not all, of the cash wheat
in sight was bought by Cincinnati Clique
for which Maurice Rosenfeld e. Co., Irwin
Green & Co. and C. J. Kershaw & Co.. were
the principal brokers on the Chicago Board
This CLIQUE, which is said to consist OF
Joseph Wiltshire, Robert Harper, of the
all of Cincinnati, had forced prices, tbs said,
by buying, as is estimated, more than
$4,000, ,60O bushels. Fully one-half of it is
held by Rosenfeld, and will, of course, be
sold under the hammer. How little faith even
the CLIQUE brokers kept among themselves
is demonstrated by the well-authenticated
rumor that Kershaw and other clique
brokers ''got from under" 5,0OO,0 600 bushels
only last Saturday and unloaded upon Rosen-
field by q trick which is not new in the man.
ipulation of a corner. The latter in this in
stance could not be sustained because the
funds for margins were not forthcoming.
1t might truthfully be said that the panic
began with the tap of the bell June wheat,
which had closed at 921l last night, broke to
S6% upon the announcement that 1,O35 cars
of wheat had arrived and that GOO more were
expected during the day. Rosenfeld's
buyers threw themselves gallantly into
the breach, meeting the decline with the as
sertion that it was the intention of the clique
to let the market down as low as the crowd
would let it in order to get in on lower
range Of prices.
But it was of no avail, because exciting
news came so thick and fast that before the
first half hour had elapsed veritable pande-
monium had broken loose. Traders who have
grown gray in the business stood aghast at
the spectacle, and the outsiders who were in
the visitors gallery witnessed sight that
they will not soon forget.
In the wheat pit the traders were acting
like insane men. The market fairly boiled.
The screaming traders did not care a conti-
mental for fractions or even cents. The terri
fed bulls, knowing that the bottom had
dropped out of their scheme, sold for what they
COulu Ecu, olu IL uCiC anu ohoi0 Ola
'lorg" turned up with buying order in the
vain hope of stemming the tide, his order
was executed before he could catch his breath.
There never was time when there was such
mad clamor for margins, and the bull
houses were fairly overwhelmed. For block
along Lasalle street the roar Of voices could
be heard.
At noon the Secretary of the Board Of
Trade announced tho failure of Rosenfeld &
Co.. which rueant that the great clique had
gone to pieces Later the failures of HaIniu
Brine and G.. w. Bailey Il Co. were an
nounced Immediately there was rush Of
excited brokers to the offices of the suspended
firms.
Later in the afternoon it was observed that
Armour, Hutchinson and other wealthy men
had come to the rescue to prevent further de-
moralization. Under these stimulating in
fuences prices rose to 74sl-a recovery Of
almost cents for cash, and SIS Il for July.
The mere statement, however, that cash
wheat fell nearly 10 cents in three hours con-
veys but very incomplete idea of the &C
tual destruction wrought. 1t means di-
rect loss Of $500, 900 in that commodity now
here in store and on the track. Furthermore,
it represents the transfer Of from S3,0O0,..
600 to $40, 100000 in profits on open trsde
in June and July-taking into consideration
the drop of 81 cents in the latter-from the
members Of the Chicago Board of Trade.
How many individual fortunes were wrecked
and made in the course of three anxious hours
only subsequent developments will show.